Do you know this man? New image of unidentified coma patient released after shave

POLICE have released a new image of an unidentified man who has been lying in a coma for more than three weeks.

Officers hope he will be easier to recognise in the latest photo, which was taken after medical staff shaved off his thick beard.

Several leads have been pursued since the man collapsed in Euston Road on Boxing Day, but police have so far failed to name him despite widespread appeals for help over Christmas.

He was found lying on the pavement just metres from University College Hospital, having suffered a heart attack.

He has since remained in an induced coma at the hospital, hooked up to life-support equipment. Doctors have described his condition as “life-threatening”.

The original image released by police last month

PC Andrew Harris, who is based at the hospital, said: “If I was a family member of this man I would have wanted police to have tried everything they reasonably could, so that I could be by his bedside,” he said.

“Somebody knows who he is or where he is from and I am desperate for him to be identified so that this can happen.”

PC Harris revealed new details of the police investigation to the New Journal last week, in the hope it may lead someone to come forward.

CCTV has shown the man walking northwards along Tottenham Court Road when he “suddenly collapsed” at around 5.30pm.

It is not known if he was making his way to the hospital for treatment or if it was merely a lucky coincidence that medical staff were so close to hand when he fell ill.

He was not carrying any bank cards or ID documents. Fingerprint and DNA samples have been sent to forensics, but have not provided a match with police records. Handwritten notes, found in his pocket, have provided leads, but lack vital details that could solve the case.

A note indicated that the man regularly visited a foodbank and a swimming pool, where he paid concession rates. However, it did not give a name or address for either. His image has been circulated to homeless outreach teams and foodbanks, but has yet to provide an answer.

Police also found evidence that he plays the Lottery regularly, to the tune of around £80 a month. They hope that he may be a familiar face to a shopkeeper, who could help unlock a vital clue.

It is believed his clothes were secondhand, having been donated to charity.
Police found a name tag inside a jumper and were able to trace the previous owner, who told them he had “donated them before leaving the country”.